December 30, 2004

This study is self-explanatory really, but two interesting findings are the emergence of a "Hispanic" racial cluster, which can be explained by the choice of a population sample from a single location, as Hispanics are generally heterogeneous racially, and the near-perfect differentiation of the Japanese from the Chinese in the Mongoloid cluster, suggesting the potential for subracial differentiation in future studies.

We have analyzed genetic data for 326 microsatellite markers that were typed uniformly in a large multiethnic population-based sample of individuals as part of a study of the genetics of hypertension (Family Blood Pressure Program). Subjects identified themselves as belonging to one of four major racial/ethnic groups (white, African American, East Asian, and Hispanic) and were recruited from 15 different geographic locales within the United States and Taiwan. Genetic cluster analysis of the microsatellite markers produced four major clusters, which showed near-perfect correspondence with the four self-reported race/ethnicity categories. Of 3,636 subjects of varying race/ethnicity, only 5 (0.14%) showed genetic cluster membership different from their self-identified race/ethnicity. On the other hand, we detected only modest genetic differentiation between different current geographic locales within each race/ethnicity group. Thus, ancient geographic ancestry, which is highly correlated with self-identified race/ethnicity—as opposed to current residence—is the major determinant of genetic structure in the U.S. population. Implications of this genetic structure for case-control association studies are discussed.

Haplogroup X originated in the western part of the Old World, and is not shared by most Mongoloids, with the exception of some Siberians and Native Americans. This study failed to discover its presence in South American Indians.

American Journal of Physical Anthropology (Early View)

Is haplogroup X present in extant South American Indians?

Cláudia L. Dornelles et al.

Abstract

A total of 1,159 mitochondrial DNA samples from two Mongolian, two Siberian, and 25 South Native American populations was surveyed for the presence of the C16278T mutation, frequently found in haplogroup X. Material from 25 carriers of that mutation was then sequenced for the hypervariable segment I (HVS-I) control region, and those that still were not classifiable in classical Amerindian haplogroups were further studied. The tests involved all the control region, as well as the presence of characteristic mutations in seven coding fragments, totalling 5,760 base pairs. The results indicate that haplogroup X is not present in these samples.

A very important new article by a group of Greek and Chinese researchers provides the first quantitative assessment of mental processing in two groups of students, aged 8 to 14, belonging to the Caucasoid and Mongoloid races.

It has long been known that many Mongoloid groups generally have higher IQ scores than Caucasoids, but the reasons for this difference have not been explained. As the authors point out "Intelligence is a multidimensional and hierarchical edifice" which involves both "general" processes which co-ordinate information processing across many domains of thought, as well as "specialized" processes which affect only particular mental tasks, involving e.g., verbal, spatial, or quantitative reasoning.

Mental processing is affected by both genes and environment, and these differ between Greeks and Chinese, as well as between most Caucasoids and Mongoloids in general. For example, Chinese words are shorter than those of Indo-European languages spoken by most Caucasoids, whereas Chinese students have to learn a logographic, picture-based writing system. These differences may affect mental processing, e.g., because "shorter" Chinese words may be stored more easily, whereas more space is required to short the more "complex" logograms of the Chinese writing system.

The article provides three important conclusions. First, the architecture of mental processing is the same in both Greeks and Chinese, involving essentially the same mental processes and organization. In other words, Greeks and Chinese think "the same". Second, the Greeks and Chinese show no difference in the general factor of mental processing which is used across different thought domains. Rather, the difference between the two groups is limited to areas requiring visuo/spatial processing:

Thus, we suggest that this advantage is related to the massive visuo/ spatial practice that they receive in learning Chinese writing. This claim is based on three findings. First, this advantage only slightly generalizes to other realms, where there is equivalent practice or minimal visuo/spatial processing. Second, the two cultural groups have about the same number of visualizers until the third grade; with increasing education, which differentiates the two cultures in the mastering of complex visual information more than in any other aspect of the curriculum, visualizers become many more among the Chinese. Third, with time, Greeks, gradually acquire compensating strategies, even if relevant practice is not sufficient to transform them into visualizers. As a result, their differences from the Chinese tend to decrease with increasing age in the visuo/spatial domain and to disappear in some other domains, such as quantitative reasoning.

The idea that the Chinese logographic system (as well as other similar systems used by other Mongoloids, such as the Koreans or Japanese) represents a type of "mental doping", improving visuo/spatial performance at an early age -if it is confirmed- represents an important victory for those who believe in the significant effect that culture has in mental development, and a further nail in the coffin of the theory that human groups differ from each other in mental processing due to innate genetic factors.

The architecture, dynamics, and development of mental processing: Greek, Chinese, or Universal?

Andreas Demetriou et al.

Abstract

This study compared Greeks with Chinese, from 8 to 14 years of age, on measures of processing efficiency, working memory, and reasoning. All processes were addressed through three domains of relations: verbal/propositional, quantitative, and visuo/spatial. Structural equations modelling and rating scale analysis showed that the architecture and developmental patterning of the various processes are basically the same in the two ethic groups. The Chinese clearly outperformed the Greeks in all tasks addressing visuo/spatial processing, from processing efficiency through working memory and reasoning, but neither in g nor in processes where the two groups have equivalent experience. This advantage was associated to the massive practice in visuo/spatial processing that is required to learn the Chinese logographic writing system. The implications for general theory of intelligence and intellectual development are discussed.

To better understand the population substructure of African Americans living in coastal South Carolina, we used restriction site polymorphisms and an insertion/deletion in mitochondrial DNA (mtDNA) to construct seven-position haplotypes across 1,395 individuals from Sierra Leone, Africa, from U.S. European Americans, and from the New World African-derived populations of Jamaica, Gullah-speaking African Americans of the South Carolina Sea Islands (Gullahs), African Americans living in Charleston, South Carolina, and West Coast African Americans. Analyses showed a high degree of similarity within the New World African-derived populations, where haplotype frequencies and diversities were similar. -statistics indicated that very little genetic differentiation has occurred within New World African-derived populations, but that there has been significant differentiation of these populations from Sierra Leoneans. Genetic distance estimates indicated a close relationship of Gullahs and Jamaicans with Sierra Leoneans, while African Americans living in Charleston and the West Coast were progressively more distantly related to the Sierra Leoneans. We observed low maternal European American admixture in the Jamaican and Gullah samples (m = 0.020 and 0.064, respectively) that increased sharply in a clinal pattern from Charleston African Americans to West Coast African Americans (m = 0.099 and 0.205, respectively). The appreciably reduced maternal European American admixture noted in the Gullah indicates that the Gullah may be uniquely situated to allow genetic epidemiology studies of complex diseases in African Americans with low European American admixture.

A very interesting new article suggests an explanation for pelvic sexual dimorphism in humans and other primates. It is found that species where men are taller than women also have the condition of women having a wide pelvis compared to men. It is suggested that the default condition is the female one; higher testosterone levels lead to increased vertical growth in males, and this extra growth is redirected from the lateral growth of the pelvis.

American Journal of Physical Anthropology (Early View)

Big-bodied males help us recognize that females have big pelves

Robert G. Tague

ABSTRACT

Schultz ([1949] Am. J. Phys. Anthropol. 7:401-424) presented a conundrum: among primates, sexual dimorphism of the pelvis is a developmental adjunct to dimorphism in other aspects of the body, albeit in the converse direction. Among species in which males are larger than females in body size, females are larger than males in some pelvic dimensions; species with little sexual dimorphism in nonpelvic size show little pelvic dimorphism. Obstetrical difficulty does not explain this relationship. The present study addresses this issue, evaluating the relationship between pelvic and femoral sexual dimorphism in 12 anthropoid species. The hypothesis is that species in which males are significantly larger than females in femoral size will have a higher incidence, magnitude, and variability of pelvic sexual dimorphism, with females having relatively larger pelves than males, compared with species monomorphic in femoral size. The results are consistent with the hypothesis. The proposed explanation is that the default pelvic anatomy in adulthood is that of the female; testosterone redirects growth from the default type to that of the male by differentially enhancing and repressing growth among the pelvic dimensions. Testosterone also influences sexual dimorphism of the femur. The magnitude of the pelvic response to testosterone is greater in species that are sexually dimorphic in the femur than in those that are monomorphic.

COLUMBUS, Ohio -- Glaciologist Lonnie Thompson worries that he may have found clues that show history repeating itself, and if he is right, the result could have important implications to modern society.

Thompson has spent his career trekking to the far corners of the world to find remote ice fields and then bring back cores drilled from their centers. Within those cores are the records of ancient climate from across the globe.

From the mountains of data drawn by analyzing countless ice cores, and a meticulous review of sometimes obscure historic records, Thompson and his research team at Ohio State University are convinced that the global climate has changed dramatically.

But more importantly, they believe it has happened at least once before, and the results were nearly catastrophic to emerging cultures at the time. He outlined his interpretations and fears today at the annual meeting of the American Geophysical Union in San Francisco.

December 27, 2004

The Azores, a Portuguese archipelago located in the north Atlantic Ocean, had no native population when the Portuguese first arrived in the 15th century. The islands were populated mainly by the Portuguese, but Jews, Moorish prisoners, African slaves, Flemish, French and Spaniards also contributed to the initial settlement. To understand the paternal origins and diversity of the extant Azorean population, we typed genomic DNA samples from 172 individuals using a combination of 10 Y-biallelic markers (YAP, SRY-1532, SRY-2627, 92R7, M9, sY81, Tat, SRY-8299, 12f2 and LLY22g) and the following Y-chromosomal STR systems: DYS389I, DYS389II, DYS390, DYS391, DYS392, DYS393 and DYS385. We identified nine different haplogroups, most of which are frequent in Europe. Haplogroup J* is the second most frequent in the Azores (13.4%), but it is modestly represented in mainland Portugal (6.8%). The other non-European haplogroups, N3 and E3a, which are prevalent in Asia and sub-Saharan Africa, respectively, have been found in the Azores (0.6% and 1.2%, respectively) but not in mainland Portugal. Microsatellite data indicate that the mean gene diversity (D) value for all the loci analysed in our sample set is 0.590, while haplotype diversity is 0.9994. Taken together, our analysis suggests that the current paternal pool of the Azorean population is, to a great extent, of Portuguese descent with significant contributions from people with other genetic backgrounds.

December 23, 2004

Unlike the story about the alleged face of Jesus which used a random 1st century AD Jewish skull, a new forensic reconstruction of Santa Claus uses the actual relics of St. Nicholas to give an idea of what the original Santa Claus (who bears little resemblance to the Santa Claus of popular culture) looked like. It is unfortunate however that St. Nicholas is identified as "Turkish" in the article and other news stories. Tunderscores the difference between the traditional concept of nationality based on blood vs. the modern concept of nationality based on place of birth. Needless to say, "Turks" did not exist in 4th century AD Anatolia.

December 15, 2004

The use of newly-coined terms with Greek roots in many branches of science continues, for three main reasons: (i) the use of words of Greek origin continues the scientific tradition of the past (ii) composites are easily formed in the Greek language unlike many other languages of the word, (iii) the Greek language in its classical form is a timeless medium of communication, and thus avoids potential problems with the evolving semantics of words drawn from vocabularies of living languages.

A post at the Genealogy-DNA list is a great example of the dangers inherent in the demise of classical learning. In ages past, many scientists had a humanistic education or could refer to colleagues who did so, and this accounts for so many of the Greek terms used in modern discourse. Today, this is not the case, leading to many suggestions of words which amount to a rape of terminology.

Some examples from the above-linked post:

"anthrogenealogy" instead of "anthropogenealogy"
"genetealogy" for "genetic genealogy"
"begetealogy" allegedly a combination of "beget" and "genealogy" which fails both for being a composit of an English with a Greek word, and for not actually including the second part "genealogy" in the composite word, and for the awful hiatus "ea"
"parentealogy" allegedly a combination of "parent" and "genealogy"

Of course it is understandable that people want to invent new terms to express new ideas. But, one doesn't always need to form a new compound for every new word. If a venerable discipline like "Organic Chemistry" does not need an abbreviation, neither does "Genetic Genealogy".

Moreover, if someone is hell-bent on inventing new terms, they should at least consult an expert.

UPDATE:

Yet another "expert" suggests that "genealogy" itself ought to be changed to geneology because allegedly "genealogy" includes "alogy" which means "NOT logical". A knowledgeable reader corrects the continued abuse of the Greek language.

Some excellent reporting from the New York Times which captures the reality of the situation almost completely:

Greece Drops Bar to Turkey's Europe Bid, but Cyprus Picks It Up

By SUSAN SACHS

Published: December 15, 2004

NICOSIA, Cyprus, Dec. 14 - It used to be that European politicians could count on Greece and Cyprus to stand in the way of Turkey's aspirations to join the European Union.

From the time Greece became a member in 1981, it raised the issue of Cyprus, divided into Greek and Turkish sides for more than 30 years, as an obstacle to Turkey's membership. The two countries have also quarreled over a constellation of tiny islands in the Aegean Sea, almost going to war over one deserted rock as recently as 1996.

But now, with much of Europe's populace up in arms over the possibility that Turkey may be invited to begin membership talks, Greece has abandoned its role as spoiler. In a sharp turn, it has become one of Turkey's biggest boosters in the negotiations preceding the European Union summit meeting that begins in Brussels on Thursday.

"I think many of our E.U. partners probably would have liked Greece to do their dirty work, the way it was 20 years ago," said Yannis G. Valinakis, the Greek deputy minister of foreign affairs. "Back then, they would hide behind Greece's back and say: 'Oh, those bloody Greeks. They're blocking us again.' "

As Greece has retreated from the fray, tiny Cyprus, with a population under 800,000, has stepped forward.

Leaders in France, Austria and Denmark, among others, have been trying to come up with a way to invite Turkey to start accession talks while signaling to their constituents, where misgivings about absorbing a Muslim country of 70 million people are rife, that the talks might never bear fruit. Cyprus may prove an ally in that effort.

After years spent in the political shadow of Greece, Cyprus became a member of the European Union in May. Now it has a veto, just like the other 24 members of the union.

Any decision on matters as serious as enlargement must be unanimous, and there is growing speculation, in Cyprus and in Brussels, that Cyprus's president, Tassos Papadopoulos, might use his veto to kill Turkey's hopes of starting accession talks if he does not get what he says Cyprus needs.

"Anyone who suggests that he won't use the veto ever, doesn't know him," said James Ker-Lindsay, a political analyst and director of a Cyprus research company called Civilitas. "He's not afraid to be a pariah."

President Papadopoulos originally laid out six conditions for his support for Turkey, including the withdrawal of Turkish troops from the divided island. Turkey, which sent its troops to Cyprus in 1974 after a coup there aimed at merging the island with Greece, has refused to discuss redeploying its troops except in the context of an overall settlement.

But recently the Cypriot leader's conditions have been distilled into a single demand: that membership talks not start until Turkey officially recognizes the Greek Cypriot government as the government of the entire island, as the European Union has done.

"I think our conditions in the whole setup are the most innocent conditions of those put on Turkey by the E.U.," said Kypros Chrysostomides, the Cypriot government spokesman.

Turkish officials have publicly refused the demand, and privately say they would have a hard time selling such a move to their public unless they first get a firm commitment to begin membership talks.

Yet they have become acutely aware that Cyprus can block a European Union consensus - precisely because, unlike other members, Cyprus has no bridges with Turkey that it fears might be burned.

This exciting new research discovered that the prevalence of left-handedness is correlated with the homicide rate in different human populations. The explanation proposed by the authors is that left-handers have an advantage during a fight, because they can surprise their opponents. This is supported by research in competitive sports where two individuals "fight" each other. However, in the past, fights were often to the death, and hence the advantage of left-handers would be selected, because they could fool their opponents more easily.

But, this ability to "fool" one's opponent is strongest when left-handedness is rare, i.e., when the right-hander doesn't expect it. As the frequency of left-handedness increases, the advantage of left-handers will gradually decrease. The equilibrium point will be different in different human societies depending on how "warlike" they are. In completely peaceful societies, no fights occur and hence left-handers have no advantage. In a very warlike society, left-handers get to kill their unfortunate right-handed opponents more frequently; but the frequency of left-handedness cannot increase unchecked, because its effectiveness diminishes as more and more people are using the "trick" of giving left-handed strikes.

The authors looked at eight traditional societies and discovered that left-handedness and the homicide rate, a measure of violence in a society are correlated. This gives strong support to this theory for the evolution of left-handedness.

Proceedings: Biological Sciences (FirstCite)

Handedness, homicide and negative frequency-dependent selection

Charlotte Faurie and Michel Raymond

Abstract:

Humans exhibit hand preference for most manual activities in which they are specialized. Right- and left-handers have coexisted at least since the Upper Palaeolithic, and left-handers are in the minority in all human populations. The persistence of the polymorphism of handedness is a puzzle because this trait is substantially heritable and several fitness costs are associated with left-handedness. Some countervailing benefit is required to maintain the polymorphism. Left-handers may have a frequency-dependent advantage in fights--the advantage being greater when their frequency is lower. Sports data from Western societies are consistent with this prediction. Here, we show that the frequency of left-handers is strongly and positively correlated with the rate of homicides across traditional societies. It ranges from 3% in the most pacifistic societies, to 27% in the most violent and warlike. This finding is consistent with a frequency-dependent selection mechanism maintaining left-handedness in these societies.

Abandonment of Minoan palaces on Crete in relation to the earthquake induced changes in groundwater supply

Yuri Gorokhovich

Abstract

Mysterious abandonment of palaces on Crete during the Late Minoan period was always a challenging problem for archeologists and geologists. Various hypotheses explained this event by effects of tsunamis, earthquakes or climatic changes that were caused by the volcanic eruption of the Santorini volcano. While each of them or their possible combination contributed to the abandonment of palaces and following Late Minoan crisis, there is another possible cause that appeared as a result of studies within the last 20–30 years. This cause is depletion of groundwater supply caused by persistent earthquake activity that took place during the Bronze Age. This explanation is supported by field observations and numerous studies of similar phenomena in other locations.

December 11, 2004

How Many Democrats per Republican at UC-Berkeley and Stanford? Voter Registration Data Across 23 Academic Departments

Daniel B. Klein et al.

Abstract: Using the records of the seven San Francisco Bay Area counties that surround University of California, Berkeley and Stanford University, we conducted a systematic and thorough study of the party registration of the Berkeley and Stanford faculty in 23 academic departments. The departments span the social sciences, humanities, hard sciences, math, law, journalism, engineering, medicine, and the business school. Of the total of 1497 individual names on the cumulative list, we obtained readings on 1005, or 67 percent. The findings support the “one-party campus” conjecture. For UC-Berkeley, we found an overall Democrat:Republican ratio of 9.9:1. For Stanford, we found an overall D:R ratio of 7.6:1. Moreover, the breakdown by faculty rank shows that Republicans are an “endangered species” on the two campuses. This article contains a link to the complete data (with individual identities redacted).

December 10, 2004

Evolutionary biologists mostly assume that polygyny increases sexual dimorphism in size because, under polygyny, larger males monopolize mating opportunities and pass on their ‘large male’ genes to their sons. Available data on parent–child correlations in height among humans (Homo sapiens) do not support the crucial assumption that height is transmitted along sex lines. This paper instead suggests that human sexual dimorphism in size emerged, not because men got taller, but because women got shorter by undergoing early menarche in response to polygyny. It further speculates that, rather than genetically transmitted, the sexual dimorphism may emerge anew in each generation in response to the degree of polygyny in society. The analysis of comparative data supports the prediction that polygyny reduces women’s height, but has no effect on men’s, and is consistent with the speculation that the origin of human sexual dimorphism in size may be cultural, not genetic.

December 09, 2004

Land, language, and loci: mtDNA in Native Americans and the genetic history of Peru

Lewis CM Jr et al.

Despite a long history of complex societies and despite extensive present-day linguistic and ethnic diversity, relatively few populations in Peru have been sampled for population genetic investigations. In order to address questions about the relationships between South American populations and about the extent of correlation between genetic distance, language, and geography in the region, mitochondrial DNA (mtDNA) hypervariable region I sequences and mtDNA haplogroup markers were examined in 33 individuals from the state of Ancash, Peru. These sequences were compared to those from 19 American Indian populations using diversity estimates, AMOVA tests, mismatch distributions, a multidimensional scaling plot, and regressions. The results show correlations between genetics, linguistics, and geographical affinities, with stronger correlations between genetics and language. Additionally, the results suggest a pattern of differential gene flow and drift in western vs. eastern South America, supporting previous mtDNA and Y chromosome investigations.

December 08, 2004

TEHRAN, Iran - These days, Iranian women are not even allowed to watch men compete on the soccer field, but 2,000 years ago they could have been carving the boys to pieces on the battlefield.

DNA tests on the 2,000-year-old bones of a sword-wielding Iranian warrior have revealed the broad-framed skeleton belonged to a woman, an archaeologist working in the northwestern city of Tabriz said Saturday.

“Despite earlier comments that the warrior was a man because of the metal sword, DNA tests showed the skeleton inside the tomb belonged to a female warrior,” Alireza Hojabri-Nobari told the Hambastegi newspaper.

He added that the tomb, which had all the trappings of a warrior’s final resting place, was one of 109 and that DNA tests were being carried out on the other skeletons.

Hambastegi said other ancient tombs believed to belong to women warriors have been unearthed close to the Caspian Sea.

According to a new study, lack of sleep is linked to weight gain; the researchers suggest that changes in the levels of two hormones linked to appetite are to blame. Is that the only possible explanation?

An alternative explanation is that people who sleep less are awake more. Since people eat when they are awake, people who are awake more have more opportunity to eat, so it's possible that in fact they do eat more, and the added food intake exceeds the energy needed to spend a few more hours awake. The hormonal changes may be simply adaptations to trigger a modified eating schedule and thus cope with more up-time.

December 07, 2004

Jews have been widely distributed for thousands of years. Therefore, any single group of Jewish descent cannot in itself tell us much about the genetic composition of Ancient Jews (*)

Previously, I had suggested that the presence of Y-haplogroups Q,R1a in Ashkenazi Jews may have been introduced by a Turkic population in Eastern Europe, and hence was not present in Ancient Jews.

A recent study on Samaritans , a group which split from Jews in BC times, indicates that these belong wholly to haplogroup J, with the exception of the Cohen Samaritans who belong to haplogroup E3b. But, since Cohens in general belong to haplogroup J (which contains the Cohen Modal Haplotype), the E3b Samaritan Cohen is probably the result of some (possibly ancient) admixture event.

The Lemba of Southern Africa are physically Negroid, but the presence in their gene pool of the Cohen Modal Haplotype indicates that they are of Jewish origin. They possess 2.9% of haplogroup E3b, which however may have been introduced by other populations of Africa.

The Bene Israel of India also have traditions of Jewish descent, and they also have a high frequency of the Cohen Modal Haplotype, substantiating these claims. They lack haplogroup E3b, and the authors of the linked study suggest that they split from other Jews before E3b entered the Jewish gene pool.

The Cohens themselves have patrilineal descent, therefore they ought to represent in principle a more "pristine" gene pool of Jewish origin than other Jews who only have (almost always) matrilineal Jewish descent. They only have 1.5% of haplogroup E, in contrast to about 18% in lay Jews.

In conclusion, it's probable that ancestral Jewish groups lacked at some stage haplogroup E3b. If this turns out to be the case, then by additionally subtracting the possible Turkic/Slavic admixture (Q+R1a), as well as other clades of possible (Indo-)European origin, it appears that the ancestral Jews belonged primarily (**) to clades of haplogroup J.

(*) By Ancient Jews, I mean "as ancient as can be determined". Ethnic groups are not static entities, and undergo continuous processes of admixture.
(**) Primarily, or even exclusively at the most ancient stage.

December 05, 2004

Some interesting tidbits from a collection of interesting abstracts of papers and posters presented at a recently held International Forensic Y–User Workshop (pdf)):

Evaluation of the Ethnic Composition in the Population of Argentine

D Corach et al.

"As depicted in most Latin American countries, there is in Argentina, a clear asymmetry regarding Amerindian matrilineage mestizo (83.3%) when compared with Amerindian patrilineage (16.7%). A clear discrepancy arose in comparison with the
physical anthropological position that claims a minimal aboriginal component in Argentina’s population. This contribution provides additional information that supports a more relevant Amerindian component in a country that claimed to be the most European one of the entire Latin America."

Y-chromosome SNP and STR analysis in a Belgian population sample

R Decorte et al.

"The developed approach has been applied to a Belgian population sample of 98 males
that has been previously typed with the Powerplex Y System (Promega). In total, 6 haplogroups (E3b, G, I, J2, R1a1 and R1b) were observed in more than one individual while 2 haplogroups (A and F*(xG,H,I,J,K) or J*) were each present in a single individual. The two most common haplogroups were R1b (60.6%) and I (13.1%) which is similar to other studies of West-European populations."

Y-STR haplotypes from East Germany – differences between carriers of surnames of Germanic and Slavic origin?

UD Immel et al.

"The goal of the present study was to investigate whether Y-chromosome haplotype analysis is capable to distinguish groups with surnames of different origin. To this end, DNA samples were obtained from 400 males born in the south of Saxony-Anhalt. Samples were divided into three groups namely those with a Germanic surname, those with a Slavic surname and those with mixed origin of the surnames. The minimal Y-STR haplotype of these two groups was analysed by AMOVA. A highly significant difference (p < 0.001,FST = 0.0309) between the Germanic and the Slavic groups was observed. When comparing this to other populations using published data, this difference is similar to that between European populations of large geographical and linguistical
differences (like e.g. between Cologne and Budapest). On the other hand, the group with surnames of the mixed origin were indistinguishable from the Germanic group (FST = 0.0008). Our results reflect that the Y chromosomal lineages of Germans born in southern Saxony-Anhalt differ depending on the ethnic and linguistic origin of their surname."

Genetic differentiation follows political borders in Europe: Y-chromosome variation in Poland and Germany

M Kayser et al.

"To test for human population substructure within Europe we have investigated Y chromosome diversity using seven microsatellites and ten binary markers in samples from eight regionally distributed populations from Poland (n = 913) and eleven from Germany (n = 1215). Based on both marker systems we observed statistically significant genetic differentiation between all Polish and all German regional populations but also genetic homogeneity within each of the two neighboring geographic regions. We suggest that this scenario can be best explained by very recent events in human population history, namely the politically forced human resettlements during and after World War II, rather than more historical population movements. In addition, our findings have important consequences for the use of Y chromosome markers in forensics and strongly argue in favor of regional Y chromosome databases and / or the implementation of population substructure into more global Y chromosome databases."

Y-chromosomal DNA variation in East Asia

Y Xue et al.

"East Asia has been inhabited by modern humans for > 50,000 years and now holds more than one quarter of the world population. Genetic analysis using classical markers identified a major north-south distinction (Cavalli- Sforza et al. 1994), which may reflect separate origins of northern and southern populations from different migrations out of Africa. The Y chromosome provides high-resolution male haplotypes and thus an opportunity to investigate male-specific history. We have typed 1012 individuals from 28 populations in China, Mongolia, Korea and Japan with 45 binary markers (mostly SNPs) and 16 microsatellites from the Y chromosome. SAMOVA analysis of Y-SNPs was used to identify the geographical divisions that apportion the maximum amount of genetic variation between groups (Dupanloup et al. 2002). It did not show the traditional north-south division, but identified small groups of distinct populations, mainly in the south. Why should Y-chromosomal variation show a different structure from that of the rest of the genome? We have investigated the distribution and time- depth of individual haplogroups. For example, haplogroup O is
largely confined to East Asia and one of its subdivisions, O3, is widespread and common in China. A subset of these chromosomes, O3/-d, is concentrated in southern China, particularly in the two Yao populations which formed one of the major SAMOVA divisions. The time depth of the O3/-d lineage was estimated at approximately 5,900 (4,500 - 8,200) years from its microsatellite variation using the program BATWING
(Wilson and Balding 1998), so must have spread after this date. A second common haplogroup is C, and C3c chromosomes are concentrated in northeastern China where they are present at highest frequency in the Oroqen population, another of the major SAMOVA divisions. A substantial subset of them appear to have expanded very recently, < 900 years ago. These results suggest that East Asian Y-chromosomal variation has been substantially reshaped by recent events within Neolithic and historical times."

Y-STR differentiation and substructuring in Pyrenean populations.

E Arroyo-Pardo et al.

"The Pyrenees are a mountain range which spans 430 km from the Atlantic to the Mediterranean shore. Its widest section (160 km) lies in the central part and contains also the highest peaks, most over 3,000 meters. Though the Pyrenees have been populated since Paleolithic times, they present a very difficult geography
that produces some degree of isolation of populations. Due to this orography, Pyrenees were perhaps a marginal area for the advance of the farming wave during Neolithic (Arias Cabal, 1991) and could be less affected by the farming spred than the rest of the Iberian Peninsula. We studied the 9 loci comprised within the minimal haplotype of the Y-STR Haplotype Reference Database (www.yhrd.org) in the autochtonous populations from East Pyrenees – Cerdanya (n = 42) and Urgell (n=34) – Central Pyrenees – Aran (n=30) –, andWest-Pyrenees – Jacetania (n=28) and Lesaca (n=42). Nine other Iberian populations from Spain and Portugal were used for comparison. Two Basque samples were also introduced in order to comprise the Basque- speaking region within the study. Genetic diversity parameters, AMOVA and mismatch distributions reveal substructuring of Pyrenean populations according to a East-West gradient. Results also point out a certain degree of differentiation between Pyreneans and the rest of Iberian samples. The genetic landscape produced may well support the isolation of the Pyrenean populations during the Neolithic diffusion due to the geography of the region."

A study on Y-STR haplotypes in the Saxon population from Transylvania – is there evidence for a German origin?

L Barbarii et al.

"Y chromosome markers are increasingly used to investigate human population histories, being considered to be sensitive systems for detecting the population movements. In this study we present Y-STR data for Transylvanian Saxons in comparison with Y-haplotypes from Romanians and other European populations.
The Transylvanian Saxons, called like that since medieval times, are representing a Romanian minority population with assumed German origin. They have settled in the Arch of Romanian Carpathian Mountains in the earliest of the 12th century. Historical and dialectal studies strongly suggest that they do not originate from Saxony, but more probably from the Mosel riversides (Rhine affluent) and also from the Eifel Mountains Valley (present territory of Luxembourg). Living protected by fortified cities in compact communities, they still represent a quite distinct population in Transylvania. Males selected for this study had all Saxon surnames and were classified by the birthplace of the paternal grandfather. The typing results
reflect high Saxon population haplotype diversity. Furthermore, we present data on the haplotype sharing of the Saxon population with other European populations, especially with Germans as well as with Romanians and Transylvanian Hungarians."

"Analysis of Y-chromosomal biallelic markers has become important because of their usefulness in forensics and archaeology. Therefore we have, together with our previous study, designed and established a Pyrosequencing (Biotage, Sweden) methodology for studying 17 biallelic Y-chromosome markers (SRY1532, YAP, SRY4064, M35, M78, M89, M201, M170, M26, M223, M253, 12f2, M9, Tat, 92R7, M17 and M269).
PCR was designed to produce amplicons around 100 bp, suitable for analysis of highly degraded DNA. We also present a population study on 305 Swedish males living in seven different regions. Genomic DNA from the males was typed for the 17 markers mentioned above. The population could thus be divided into 16 different haplogroups. Together with results from minimal haplotype Y-STR-analysis population parameters
will be calculated, for example FST statistics, diversities and others. According to preliminary data, Västerbotten significantly differs from other regions which is also shown by Roewer et al (Hum Genet in press)."

Y-chromosomal STR haplotypes in Sicily

C Robino et al.

"The reconstruction of the genetic history of Sicily is extremely difficult, because of the complexity of human movements and settlements that interested this area of the Mediterranean Sea in prehistorical and historical times. Previous studies, based on classical and DNA markers (autosomal STRs and mtDNA), are discordant regarding the presence of genetic heterogeneity within the island, some of them suggesting a geographical pattern of differentiation following a longitudinal (East- West) axis. Analysis of Y-chromosome biallelic polymorphisms showed a haplogroup frequency distribution similar to Southern Italy and Greece. In this study, Y-STRs currently used to define the minimal haplotype employed in the “Y-STR haplotype reference
database” (DYS19, DYS389I-II, DYS390, DYS391, DYS392, DYS393, and DYS385) were typed in 215 unrelated males from Sicily. Individuals represented in the population sample were chosen from both geographically and historically distinct areas of the island: Trapani, Santa Ninfa, Alcamo (Western Sicily); Sciacca, Caccamo, Mazzara del Vallo (Central Sicily); Troina, Ragusa, Piazza Armerina (Eastern Sicily). Comparison of haplotype distributions was carried out between different sampling regions and with neighbouring Mediterranean populations."

Y-chromosomal STR haplotypes in Macedonian population samples

M Spiroski et al.

"Eleven Y-chromosomal short tandem repeats (STRs), DYS19, DYS389I, DYS389II, DYS390, DYS391, DYS392, DYS393, DYS385, DYS437, DYS438, DYS439 were typed in DNA samples from Macedonian population (n = 150). The Macedonian population sample has two dominant minimal haplotypes with frequencies > 5% (13,13,30,24,10,11,13,16-18 and 16,13,31,24,11,11,13,14-15). By haplotype extension (DYS437, DYS438, DYS439) both of these minimal haplotypes can be further split up into 4 different, 1-allele step deviant chromosomes, respectively. The frequencies of the 20 most frequent minimal haplotypes in the Macedonian population have been compared with those from populations inhabiting 4 neighbouring geographic regions sampled for the YHRD, i.e. Albania (n = 101), Bulgaria (n = 122), Croatia (n = 150) and Greece (n = 101). The analysis revealed the most pronounced similarities in the minimal haplotype frequency with the Croatian and Albanian samples. The gene diversity for the minimal haplotype was 0.9838, for the 11-locus haplotype 0.9889. One haplotype analysed in this study includes a duplication of the locus DYS19 (alleles 15,16), a type of mutation which has been observed so far with a frequency of about 0.05% in 21,546 individuals in the YHRD (release 10 from February 26, 2004)."

"Genetic distances comparison between populations using both Y-STR and mtDNA markers indicated Chinese-Malay are the most related, while Chinese-Indian are the furthest apart genetically. To our knowledge, this study represents the most comprehensive report of Y-STR and mtDNA haplotype distribution in Singapore to date."

Dec. 3, 2004 — One of the oldest international cultural disputes, the battle over the Elgin Marbles, has taken another turn as a distinguished Cambridge scholar says the sculptures would have been just fine if Lord Elgin had left them in Athens.

Following a sophisticated 11-year conservation program in Athens, the 14 slabs that Lord Elgin did not manage to remove are now showing surprisingly bright original details.

"They are in better shape than anything in London. We now know exactly what Lord Elgin 'saved' them from: one has only to go to Athens and see for oneself," Anthony Snodgrass, professor emeritus of classical archaeology at Cambridge University, told Discovery News.

Indeed, the 17 figures and 56 panels chiseled off in 1801 by Lord Elgin from a giant frieze that once decorated ancient Athens' most sacred shrine, the Parthenon, bear dramatic signs of the British Museum's heavy-handed cleaning scandal in the 1930s.

The fearless horsemen, sprightly youths, lounging deities, belligerent centaurs and expressive horses were cruelly scraped and scrubbed with chisels and wire brushes in an attempt to make them whiter than white, an aesthetic admired by museumgoers.

Despite the 1930s cleaning, the British Museum has always maintained that the museum is the best possible place for the marbles to be on display.

"The British Museum is a truly universal museum of humanity, accessible to five million visitors from around the world every year entirely free of entry charge.

"The Parthenon Marbles have been central to the museum's collections, and to its purpose, for almost two hundred years. Only here can the worldwide significance of the sculptures be fully grasped," Neil MacGregor, the museum's director, said in a statement.

He added that centuries of damage have meant that "the Parthenon is a ruin" and that only 50 percent of the original sculptures survive today.

"They can now only be an incomplete collection of fragments," MacGregor said.

Until now, no one had been able to have a close view of the slabs Lord Elgin did not remove as they were too high up on the Parthenon. When they were taken down in 1993, a thick layer of soot made it almost impossible to distinguish anything.

Now, after undergoing a double-laser cleaning program, the marble pieces show an abundance of details, such as chisel marks and veins on the horses bellies.

According to Snodgrass, who has chaired the British Committee for the Reunification of the Parthenon Marbles since 2002, the difference between British museum's marbles and the Greek ones is clear to anyone who compares them.

"The Athens pieces have more detail preserved, and are more like what their makers intended," Snodgrass said.

He noted that the much-debated natural-stained patina is still present in the newly restored Greek marbles, while it is totally gone in the British museum's pieces.

Carved by Phidias in the 5th century B.C., the Parthenon sculptures are scattered throughout several European museums, including the Louvre in Paris.

But the bulk of the marbles are kept in London's British Museum. Greece contends they were stolen in 1801 by Lord Elgin, British ambassador to the Ottoman Empire. Britain claims that Lord Elgin had permission from the ruling Turkish authorities to take them.

Greece has been demanding the return of the Elgin Marbles since the country's independence from Turkey in 1829.

It is now building an Acropolis Museum which is due to be completed by 2006. The museum will include a Parthenon Hall which will remain empty until the marbles have been returned.

December 02, 2004

Y-chromosome haplogroups N and Q are both very frequent in northern Eurasia. To get a better understanding of the correlation between these haplogroups and physical types, I have gathered frequency data from Am. J. Hum. Genet. 74:661–682, 2004 and anthropological descriptions from The Red Book of the Peoples of the Russian Empire. I list all Siberian populations which have frequency greater than 50% for one of these haplogroups.

Khants (N=76.6%):

Anthropologically, the Khants are representatives of the Uralic race. Over half of their racial characteristics are predominantly Mongoloid (particularly in the Beryozovo region). They are short (the average height for men is 158 cm and for women 146 cm), and their broad-shouldered stocky trunk has a characteristic convexity. They have narrow eyes and high cheek-bones and their eyes and hair are dark.

Nganasans (N=92.1%):

Anthropologically, the Nganasans are representatives of the Uralic race in which Mongoloid and Arctic traits dominate European. Due to their relative isolation they have scarcely mixed with other peoples, (this situation has changed in more recent times with incursions by the Dolgans and Russians). Nganasans are a short (men up to 160 cm), stocky people. They have a broad face with high cheekbones, a flat nose and the epicanthic fold. Hair and eyes are dark but the skin is relatively fair.

Nenets (N=97.3%):

Anthropologically, the Nenets are representatives of the Uralic race with stronger than average Mongoloid characteristics. They are commonly of short stature (the average male height is 158 cm) and a stocky build. The face is broad and flat, with a short and somewhat protruding nose. While hair is straight and thick, beard growth is poor. Eyelids commonly exhibit epicanthic folds. Due to dark pigmentation, hair and eyes are black or brown and the skin is swarthy. In appearance the Nenets resemble most the Ostyaks, displaying, however, more Mongoloid characteristics. The Nenets of the Arkhangelsk region exhibit a somewhat stronger European strain.

Selkups (Q=66.4%):

Anthropologically, the Selkups are representatives of the Uralic race, being rather similar to the Ob-Ugrians. They are of small stature (men below 160 cm) and have a short skull. The hair and eyes are dark. Mongoloid traits are less conspicuous than in the Northern Samoyeds, the colour of the skin is fairer. The Selkups are unique among the Samoyeds as they are bearded.

Kets (Q=93.7%):

Anthropologically the Ket belong to the Mongoloid North-Asian race, although some features of the Uralic race are also observable. Compared to Mongoloid people, the colour of their skin and eyes is lighter, but in comparison with the Uralic people their skin is darker, their nose is more protrusive and their beard growth poorer. Their face is broad and flat, with high cheekbones. They are short and stout. In 1843 A. Th. von Middendorff gave the following description: "the Kets are plump with thin legs and a staggering walk, flitting eyes and a jerky talk. In spite of their Mongoloid features they look quite alike the Finns".

Yakuts (N=88.4%):

?

Some observations: it seems that haplogroup N implies presence of the Uralic race, as I have noted elsewhere. Haplogroup Q, which is also strongly represented in the American Mongoloids, is present in two of the Siberian groups, one of them identified as Mongoloid (Kets) in the Red Book, while the other (Selkups) identified as Uralic.

The Uralic race has been thought to be either the result of admixture of Caucasoids with Mongoloids, or a race of its own which has also undergone admixture with the two major Eurasian races. The discovery of haplogroup N and the study of its distribution strongly suggests that the Uralic race has an independent origin, even though it seems to be related to the Mongoloid race.

In the case of haplogroup Q, its Mongoloid association seems unassailable, especially since it is found in the Americas. Therefore, the identification of the Selkups as "Uralic" requires an explanation. The Selkups have a frequency of Caucasoid haplogroups (R1b+R1a=25.2%) plus 6.9% of haplogroup N. Therefore in their case, their "Uralic"-type of appearance is probably the result of admixture between Caucasoids, a hint of "real" Uralics, and Q-haplogroup Mongoloids.

In conclusion, the genetic data seems to support the multidimensional craniometric view of Uralics as a race of their own which also shows signs of hybridization with Caucasoids and Mongoloids on a West-East axis.

According to EU-wide statistics for 2002 — when the Union still consisted of 15 states — the overall average figure for new AIDS sufferers was 24.8 per million. In Greece, the corresponding figure was just 8.7 per million of the population. For the same year, the EU average figure for new HIV infections was 76.7 per million, and 38 per million in Greece.

Any two human groups will almost certainly have different distributions for any particular trait. The distributions may have different shapes, means, standard deviations, and may differ significantly, as in facial flatness between Europeans and East Asians, or only a little, as in IQ between Germans and Danes.

In some traits one group will have a "better" distribution than another -- if the trait has a positive or negative value, e.g., the incidence of some disease, or IQ. In other traits it will have a "worse" distribution. There will also be some traits, e.g., the incidence of shovel-shaped incisors where differences can't be interpreted as either "positive" or "negative".

These are just the facts about group differences. People have different ways of approaching these facts, and I distinguish four basic attitudes:

Pure Racists claim that group A is better than group B without qualification. Racism can be summarized as the belief in the essential superior value of one group over another.

Selective Racists claim that group A is better than group B for a particular set of traits. Selective racists may be justified in claiming group differences in value, however they exhibit bias in their subjective choice of traits. If for example group A is taller and smarter (on average) than group B, but also fatter and more prone to cancer, then a selective racist who belongs to group A may assert the value of A based on height and intelligence, subjectively preferring these traits over fatness and tendency to cancer.

Realists acknowledge group differences equally and do not bias their thinking in favor of a set of traits in which their group seems to do better than other human groups.

Selective Egalitarians acknowledge group differences over a particular set of traits, especially those that do not have an obvious value, such as curly hair or shovel-shaped incisors, but refuse to acknowledge such differences over other traits, especially ones with a clear value, such as intelligence.

Pure Egalitarians refuse to accept any differences, or to talk about differences, or even -in extreme cases- to acknowledge the very existence of separate human groups.

December 01, 2004

A group Iranian heritage and academic experts plan to conduct DNA tests on bones of people dating back to the Iron Age to discern their race, complexion color and endemic diseases at that time, in the most daunting project for local archeology in recent memory.

Studies show the Iron Age people used to dwell in Persia from 2,500 BC to 500 BC, leaving behind a telltale sign in the form of grey potteries. The funerary artifacts unearthed in Iran's ancient cemeteries indicated those people took pride in their multifaceted and diversified culture and religious beliefs, though the dearth of knowledge on their settlements has frustrated archeologists.

A relatively young scientific approach among local archeologists, DNA tests would hopefully unravel mysteries of one the most intriguing epoch of human history.
Now a team archeologists in Tarbiat Modarres University (TMU) in Tehran and Iran's Cultural Heritage and Tourism Organization (CHTO) plan to embark on a fact-finding mission, on the orders of CHTO's president Hussein Marashi.

Dr. Alireza Hozhabri Nobari, an archeologist in TMU who pioneered DNA tests on skeletons dug out from graves in the northwestern city of Tabriz, believes the approach could lead to solving some Iron Age mysteries.

November 30, 2004

In phylogenetic systematics one of the necessary preconditions for the recognition of a taxon is its monophyletic status. In other words, members of a taxon must share common descent, and not just relative similarity as in phenetics.

If three groups of organisms A, B, C are such that A and B are more similar to each other than they are to C, then phenetics would consider classifying A and B in one taxon and C in another. By contrast, phylogenetics would try to establish whether A and B share common characters derived from an ancestor that was not an ancestor of C. If it turns out e.g., that B and C have such an ancestor, then B and C should be grouped together, even though B is closer to A than to C.

It has long been established that human beings can be grouped into clusters corresponding to major "continental" populations. This has been achieved using cranial traits, classical polymorphisms, as well as more recently large numbers of microsatellites. Therefore, we are justified in thinking about the existence of human races in the phenetic sense.

However, recent advances in phylogeography, especially based on uniparentally transmitted markers on the Y chromosome and mtDNA have shown that human continental populations which correspond to phenetic races such as "Caucasoids", "Negroids", "Mongoloids", etc. do not correspond to monophyletic groups.

For example, almost 9 out of 10 Ainu trace their paternal lineage to an ancestor who has also fathered approximately 9 out of 10 Moroccans and South African Bantu. That man, who first carried the YAP mutation, lived either in Asia or Africa, and yet his descendants belong to three of the major human races.

Similarly, 9 out of 10 Basques are descended from a man who has also fathered 9 out of 10 Kets from Siberia and 9 out of 10 Maya Indians from America. That man, founder of haplogroup P thus has descendants who belong to two of the major human races (or three, if Amerindians are considered as separate from Asian Mongoloids).

Thus, despite the close proximity between, e.g., Spain and Morocco, and the genetic and phenotypic similarity of their inhabitants, who are considered to belong to the Caucasoid race, it is the case that phylogenetically, Spanish Basques and Mayan Indians share recent ancestry not shared by Moroccan Berbers, and conversely, Moroccan Berbers share recent ancestry with South African Bantu not shared by Basques.

Should we then acknowledge the existence of a "YAP race", or a "P race" on the basis of these observations? Not at all, since by examining other phylogenetically informative systems, e.g., mtDNA, it turns out that Basques and Moroccans are phylogenetically linked to the woman founder of mtDNA haplogroup N, while Ainu and Mayans are linked to a woman founder of mtDNA haplogroup M.

In conclusion, human continental populations form groups of genetic and phenotypic similarity, and these groups can be considered races in the phenetic sense. However, these groups are not monophyletic, hence in the cladistic sense they should not be considered as valid taxa. Since the principle of common descent is generally applied in modern systematics (or at least it should!), I think it's best not to recognize human subspecies.

We may still however speak of human races as clusters of biological similarity, or as ecotypes, if we keep in mind the understanding that the commonly recognized races are not phylogenetically justified.

November 26, 2004

It has long been established that Neanderthals were phyletically distinct from humans, but a new study estimates just how much admixture between the two species might have taken place during their cohabitation of Europe.

PLoS Biol. 2004 Nov 30;2(12):e421 [Epub ahead of print]

Modern Humans Did Not Admix with Neanderthals during Their Range Expansion into Europe.

Currat M et al.

The process by which the Neanderthals were replaced by modern humans between 42,000 and 30,000 before present is still intriguing. Although no Neanderthal mitochondrial DNA (mtDNA) lineage is found to date among several thousands of Europeans and in seven early modern Europeans, interbreeding rates as high as 25% could not be excluded between the two subspecies. In this study, we introduce a realistic model of the range expansion of early modern humans into Europe, and of their competition and potential admixture with local Neanderthals. Under this scenario, which explicitly models the dynamics of Neanderthals' replacement, we estimate that maximum interbreeding rates between the two populations should have been smaller than 0.1%. We indeed show that the absence of Neanderthal mtDNA sequences in Europe is compatible with at most 120 admixture events between the two populations despite a likely cohabitation time of more than 12,000 y. This extremely low number strongly suggests an almost complete sterility between Neanderthal females and modern human males, implying that the two populations were probably distinct biological species.

November 24, 2004

This paper found that group differences between natives and immigrants in the Netherlands were correlated with cognitive complexity of the tasks performed: bigger differences for more cognitively complex tasks.

Personality and Individual Differences (Article in Press)

Immigrant-majority group differences on work-related measures: the case for cognitive complexity

Jan te Nijenhuis et al.

Abstract

Comparisons on work-related measures of immigrants and majority group members in general result in less positive outcomes for immigrants. These findings are usually thought to be caused by various cultural factors. We hypothesized that the more cognitively complex the measures, the larger group differences become. The research sample consisted of 78 immigrant and 78 ethnic Dutch trainee truck drivers. For 23 work-related measures the correlation between standardized group differences and measures of cognitive complexity was r = .664 (p = .000). This strongly suggests that besides cultural factors individual differences in the ability to deal with cognitive complexity is an important factor in explaining group differences.

November 23, 2004

The following article seems to confirm, on the basis of dental traits, the hybrid origin of Southeast Asians, with the earliest inhabitants being Australoids, to which Mongoloids were later added, starting probably with the Neolithic.

It seems to me that in South and Southeast Asia, and perhaps in South Arabia to the west, and stretching into Oceania in the east, the earlier inhabitants were of an old, pigmented subequatorial "Paleo-Asian" type. Over this Paleolithic stratum, the main Eurasiatic races were added: Caucasoids in Arabia and India, and Mongoloids in Southeast Asia.

American Journal of Physical Anthropology (Early View)

Dental perspectives on the population history of Southeast Asia

Hirofumi Matsumura et al.

ABSTRACT

This article uses metric and nonmetric dental data to test the two-layer or immigration hypothesis whereby Southeast Asia was initially occupied by an Australo-Melanesian population that later underwent substantial genetic admixture with East Asian immigrants associated with the spread of agriculture from the Neolithic period onwards. We examined teeth from 4,002 individuals comprising 42 prehistoric and historic samples from East Asia, Southeast Asia, Australia, and Melanesia. For the odontometric analysis, dental size proportions were compared using factor analysis and Q-mode correlation coefficients, and overall tooth size was also compared between population samples. Nonmetric population affinities were estimated by Smith's distances, using the frequencies of 16 tooth traits. The results of both the metric and nonmetric analyses demonstrate close affinities between recent Australo-Melanesian samples and samples representing early Southeast Asia, such as the Early to Middle Holocene series from Vietnam, Malaysia, and Flores. In contrast, the dental characteristics of most modern Southeast Asians exhibit a mixture of traits associated with East Asians and Australo-Melanesians, suggesting that these populations were genetically influenced by immigrants from East Asia. East Asian metric and/or nonmetric traits are also found in some prehistoric samples from Southeast Asia such as Ban Kao (Thailand), implying that immigration probably began in the early Neolithic. Much clearer influence of East Asian immigration was found in Early Metal Age Vietnamese and Sulawesi samples. Although the results of this study are consistent with the immigration hypothesis, analysis of additional Neolithic samples is needed to determine the exact timing of population dispersals into Southeast Asia.

November 20, 2004

The average height of the new generation in Greece has increased to 1.78 for men and 1.66 for women. This means that today's 20-year-old men are 3cm taller than 40-year-olds and 5cm taller than 50-year-olds, while 20-year-old women are 2cm taller than 40-year-olds and 3cm taller than 50-year-olds.

The article in Vita notes that the new generation owes its higher stature partly to the degrees of its parents: 20-year-old youths with parents having a university degree are slightly taller than those whose parents have graduated only from high school.

However, experts believe that the average stature of the population will begin to stabilize in our country in the next few decades. In other European countries, the height increase has slowed down significantly: in Sweden, the average height of recruits is stable (1.79) in the last 17 years, while in Holland, the change per decade is now limited to 1.3cm, while up to 1980 it was 2-3cm.

Differentiation of the Mitochondrial Subhaplogroup U4 in the Populations of Eastern Europe, Ural, and Western Siberia: Implication to the Genetic History of the Uralic Populations

B. A. Malyarchuk

Phylogenetic relationships between the sequences of the mitochondrial DNA (mtDNA) hypervariable segment 1, belonging to subhaplogroup U4, were examined in the populations of Eastern Europe, Ural, and Northwest Siberia. It was shown that the frequency of subhaplogroup U4, as well as its proportion in the U-component of the gene pools, increased eastwards, reaching maximum values in the populations of Northwest Siberia. Phylogenetic analysis it was showed that the appearance of specific U4-lineage (16113C–16356–16362) in the ancestors of Mansi was most likely caused by its divergence from the East European cluster 16356–16362 in the Late Upper Paleolithic (18566 ± 12915 years before present). Other U4 mtDNA lineages (16189–16356 and 16311–16356), typical mostly of the indigenous populations of Northwest Siberia (Mansi, Nganasans, and Kets) may have formed during the Neolithic–early Bronze Age (6055 ± 3599 years before present, on average). It seems likely that the isolation of ancient populations inhabiting the region between the Ob' and Yenisei rivers was the key factor, providing the appearance of the unique Caucasoid mtDNA lineages in their gene pools. These results were consistent with the traditional point of view on the mixed origin of the Finno-Ugric populations of the Volga–Ural region and West Siberia, resulted from the genetic relationships between the populations of Europe and Asia.

Restriction Polymorphism of Mitochondrial DNA in Koreans and Mongolians

M. V. Derenko et al.

Using the data on mitochondrial DNA (mtDNA) restriction polymorphism, the gene pools of Koreans (N = 164) and Mongolians (N = 48) were characterized. It was demonstrated that the gene pools were represented by the common set of mtDNA haplogroups of East Asian origin (M*, M7, M8a, M10, C, D4, G*, G2, A, B*, B5, F1, and N*). In addition to this set, mtDNA haplogroups D5 and Y were identified in Koreans while Mongolians possessed haplogroup Z. Only in Mongolians, a European component with the frequency of 10.4% and represented by the mtDNA types belonging to haplogroups K, U4, and N1, was identified. Phylogenetic and statistical analyses of the data on mtDNA variation in the populations of South Siberia, Central, and East Asia suggested the existence of interpopulation differentiation within these regions, the main role in which was played by the geographical and linguistic factors. Analysis of the pairwise FST distances demonstrated close genetic similarity of Koreans to Northern Chinese, which in turn, were clearly different from Southern Chinese populations. Mongolians occupied an intermediate position between the ethnic groups of South Siberia and Central/East Asia.

November 18, 2004

Genetic Structure of Hmong-Mien Speaking Populations in East Asia as Revealed by mtDNA Lineages

Bo Wen et al.

Abstract

Hmong-Mien (H-M) is a major language family in East Asia, and its speakers distribute primarily in southern China and Southeast Asia. To date, genetic studies on H-M speaking populations are virtually absent in the literatures. In this report, we analyzed genetic variations in the mtDNA HVS1 region and diagnostic variants in the coding regions in 537 individuals sampled from 17 H-M populations across East Asia. The results showed that the haplogroups that are predominant in the southern East Asia including B, R9, N9a, and M7 account for 63% (ranging from 45% to 90%) of mtDNAs in H-M populations. Furthermore, AMOVA, phylogenetic tree and principal component (PC) analysis demonstrate closer relatedness between H-M and other southern East Asians, suggesting a general southern origin of maternal lineages in the H-M populations. The estimated ages of the mtDNA lineages that are specific to H-M coincide with those based on archeological cultures that have been associated with H-M. Analysis of genetic distance and phylogenetic tree indicated some extent of difference between the Hmong and Mien populations. Together with the higher frequency of north-dominating lineages observed in the Hmong people, it is indicated that the Hmong populations had experienced more contact with the northern East Asians, consistent with historical evidence. Moreover, our data defined some new (sub-)haplogroups (A6, B4e, B4f, C5, F1a1, F1a1a, and R9c), which will direct further efforts to improve the phylogeny of East Asian mtDNAs.

November 17, 2004

You can tell a lot about people from their trash, but a new story from "New Scientist" shows how garbage can be used to trace the origins of sedentary communities. The existence of "dwellings" alone does not prove that these were used by a sedentary community, because it's possible that they were simply a temporary abode of a tribe of mobile individuals.

The main idea that researchers used is that humans established in a village community must devise a method of disposing trash to specified locations away from their habitation; otherwise the stuff just piles up! On the other hand, non-sedentary people can afford to throw the trash anywhere, since they will move out long before there's too much of it.

Using this type of reasoning, it was determined that the 12,000 year old Natufian dwellings at Wadi Hammeh 27 were used by non-sedentary hunter-gatherers, while true sedentism and garbage disposal is found only 9,200 to 8,000 years ago, together with the first agricultural communities.

This discovery strengthens the case that sedentism did not predate agriculture; it is more likely that it evolved at the same time as agriculture itself.

November 16, 2004

The Nazis’ occupation of Greece resulted in death, devastation, and the theft and destruction of countless cultural relics of the classical past

High-ranking officers of the German occupying forces stand on the Acropolis in May 1941. Despite promises to respect ancient Greek sites, the Acropolis in general, and the Parthenon in particular, were used as urinals.

By Yiannis Elafros - Kathimerini

The period of German, Italian and Bulgarian occupation in World War II left terrible scars, not only on the population — with hundreds of thousands dead, the deprivation, oppression and destruction — but also on Greece’s archaeological and cultural heritage. Trenches sliced through archaeological sites, museums and collections were destroyed or looted, while huge numbers of churches and monasteries were bombed or burnt by the occupation forces.

The Greek lands, which bear such obvious traces of history, were ground beneath the Nazis’ iron heel. From the Acropolis to Babylon, it is the fate of monuments to suffer during wars and occupations.

In a report published in 1946 by the Directorate of Antiquities and Historical Monuments, the Greek state attempted to record all the losses that took place during those dark years. Of the cultural artifacts stolen, few were returned after the war. Likewise, not all war reparations were paid.

Souvenirs

The Nazis invading Greece brought with them a passion for antiquity and an ideological viewpoint that placed the roots of the Aryan race in ancient Greece. The Wehrmacht had even supplied German soldiers with leaflets on the archaeological heritage of Greece and the importance, from their own standpoint, of archaeological sites, stressing that they must be left untouched.

But even in an army with the fanaticism and discipline of the Nazis, theory was distinctly remote from practice. Even high-ranking officers of the Wehrmacht did not hesitate to take something as a souvenir, should such an opportunity present itself.

There were also organized thefts, and even wholesale looting of antiquities, as in Elefsina. “When you have power over life and death, then it seems a simple matter to take a stone or make off with a statuette,” historian Hagen Fleischer told Kathimerini.

Parthenon libations

Not even the Acropolis, where the Germans did not hesitate to put German anti-aircraft guns, escaped. After protests by the Greek archaeological service, they withdrew their own guns but pushed the Italians to position their mortars and anti-aircraft searchlights there instead. Cement structures were even erected on the Sacred Rock by the German allies.

These were all taken down in February 1942, but, as the 1946 report said, “for the occupation forces, all the Acropolis monuments were urinals, with preference given to the Parthenon.”

Liberation did not end the depredations suffered by the Acropolis. In December 1944, British troops encamped on the Acropolis used it as a base for firing at the Communist-led resistance forces.

When the overall barbarity of the Nazi occupation is taken into account, people suffered much worse than the monuments. The German administration tried to keep up appearances, especially where the monuments of classical antiquity were concerned. There was a manifest attempt by the Nazis at an ideological exploitation of the ancient Greek heritage. A typical example was a personal order by Himmler for the commencement of intensive excavations at Ancient Sparta. It was hoped they would find Doric and pre-Hellenic monuments that obviously would be used to confirm Nazi theories of the Aryan race.

Formally, the Germans had handed over control of archaeological sites and excavations to the Greek archaeological service. But they wielded the real power, overriding whatever objections these straw men raised.

But a number of workers at museums and the archaeological services fought to save Greece’s antiquities. One of the most impressive stories in this struggle was the burial of all the Archaeological Museum of Athens’s most valuable material, a process that began with the commencement of the Greco-Italian war. A titanic undertaking that lasted six whole months, it was completed before the Germans entered Athens. The museum’s property was returned to it, unscathed, after the war.

Some areas, such as Crete, suffered worse than others. The island had the misfortune to have a governor who was also an amateur archaeologist. General Julius Ringel even organized digs at Knossos from which he lifted various valuable items. In 1942, he was transferred to the Eastern Front, where he would have probably have found little use for them.

Where the Germans were utterly ruthless was during the so-called “cleansing operations” — raids on the Greek countryside which resulted in huge devastation and massacres in a number of villages (Kalavryta, Distomo and others). These raids were more frequent in the last years of the occupation, in a response to increasing pressure by ELAS resistance fighters.

During this period, a large number of monasteries and churches were destroyed (Meteora, Aghia Lavra, Hosios Meletios, etc.), many of them dating to the Byzantine era and all containing important artifacts.

Apart from the Greek report, there is the official British report (“Works of Art in Greece, the Greek Islands and the Dodecanese: Losses and Survivals in the War,” London, HMSO, 1946), which said that, given the extent of the fighting and resistance, the damage done to the archaeological sites and monuments of classical antiquity was relatively slight. The same was not true of churches, which were frequently burned by Italian and German forces. The Bulgarians come in for special mention for the havoc they wreaked on the archaeological sites and museums of Eastern Macedonia and Thrace, which suffered heavily.

November 13, 2004

My reading of these records seems to indicate that most of them are of Jewish origin. There may be probably some bias, due to the greater representation among Ashkenazi Jews in the ysearch sample compared to Christian Eastern Europeans, but a search for haplogroup R1a reveals some names which sound non-Jewish, at least with my limited knowledge.

Classified ads in the newspaper Sydney's Child are saturated with couples appealing for an "angel" to help them have a family. Couples can go to the US, where it is legal to pay donors, but the cost can be up to $US25,000. But pro-family cultural attitudes in Greece mean a higher proportion of women there are happy to give eggs at the same time as their own treatment, said Denyse Asher, an IVF scientist from the Sydney fertility service that put the McAdams in touch with their Greek doctors.

Ms Asher said it was rare for older women to find a donor from their immediate circle. "If they're younger, their sisters and cousins are all in the same reproductive age group. But if they find themselves sitting here at 44, most of their friends and sisters are too."

Besides, taking an egg from a known person can raise complex issues. "You've got to work out what role they will have. Are they going to want to be at birthday parties and how do you feel about that?" said Ms Asher, who runs a Bondi Junction fertility service with her husband, Joel Bernstein.

She said they had referred more than 50 couples to the Greek clinic, of whom 76 per cent had become pregnant.

This paper shows a relationship between mitochondrial haplogroups and, amyotrophic lateral sclerosis, a neurodegenerative disease. The researchers found that individuals with mtDNA haplogroup I had a decreased risk for the disease. According to GeoGene, haplogroup I is labeled as "Asia Minor," perhaps reflecting its likely origin.

Could mitochondrial haplogroups play a role in sporadic amyotrophic lateral sclerosis?

Mancuso M et al.

Mitochondrial impairment has been implicated in the pathogenesis of the amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS). Furthermore, mitochondrial-specific polymorphisms were previously related to other neurodegenerative diseases, such as Parkinson, Friedreich and Alzheimer disease. To investigate if specific genetic polymorphisms within the mitochondrial genome (mtDNA) could act as susceptibility factors and contribute to the clinical expression of sporadic ALS (sALS), we have genotyped predefined European mtDNA haplogroups in 222 Italian patients with sALS and 151 matched controls. Individuals classified as haplogroup I demonstrated a significant decrease in risk of ALS versus individuals carrying the most common haplogroup, H (odds ratio 0.08, 95% confidence interval 0.04-0.4, p < 0.01). Further stratification of the dataset by sex, age and site of onset of disease and survival failed to reach significance for association. Our study provides evidence of the contribution of mitochondrial variation to the risk of ALS development in Caucasians. Further it may help elucidate the mechanism of the mitochondrial dysfunction detectable in ALS, and may be of relevance in development of strategies for the treatment of this disease.

November 12, 2004

Whit Athey has written a nifty Y-haplogroup predictor. You enter your STR data, and the predictor gives you a score for various (mostly Caucasoid) haplogroups. This will be useful to any people looking to get a quick estimate of their probable haplogroup without having to dive into the technical literature for information. Alternatively, GeoGene and Trace Genetics offer haplogroup determination tests, and other labs let you test for particular SNPs after you get a regular STR test.

At least in my case, the Y haplogroup predictor seemed to work fine, even when I entered a small number of values.

November 11, 2004

I glanced through Stephen Oppenheimer's The Real Eve : Modern Man's Journey Out of Africa today. A pretty good book, covering both the Y-chromosomal and mitochondrial phylogeny of mankind, and seemingly less intellectually "lightweight" than some other rcent entries in the genre. On the minus side, the tendency of geneticists to give fanciful names to clades is very tiring, and I caught a few instances of Oppenheimmer trying to "fit" biblical genealogy with human phylogeny to justify his choices. On the plus side, any book that still uses terms like "Mongoloid" and "Australoid" shows a refreshing degree of acceptance of the traditional racial nomenclature. I didn't read enough to discover the obligatory "race doesn't exist" section -which has become quasi-obligatory in books on this subject- and I hope The Real Eve doesn't have one. All in all, I think it's a good primer on human genetic prehistory.

November 09, 2004

Continuing the previous post, it has struck me as interesting that the frequency of haplogroups R1a and Q in Altaian Turkic speakers is about 46/17 or a ratio of ~2.7, while in Ashkenazi Jews it is 12/5, or a ratio of ~2.4.

I haven't been able to dig up any reliable information about the ultimate origins of the Khazars in Asia, and many Turkic-speaking groups lack haplogroup Q, which is on the other hand found among Uralic-speakers, both in Siberia and in Hungary. Haplogroup Q is found at traces in Anatolia, making it possible that eastward moving Turkic speakers may have possessed this haplogroup. Even in Hungary, the Uralic-speaking Magyars were at the head of a confederacy which included Turkic speakers.

So, it seems likely at first hand that Turkic elements may have possessed some blend of R1a and Q in addition to other lineages. What the proportion of these in Khazars was is anyone's guess, but the similarity of the ratio of the two haplogroups in Ashkenazi Jews and Altaians is interesting.

Altaians also have 22.4% of haplogroup C, which is lacking in Ashkenazi, but this is probably due to the later westward moving of Altaic Mongolians in Genghis Khan times, which followed migrations of Turkic speakers.

Altaians also have traces of haplogroup N, which has also been detected in Ashkenazi, and is yet another piece of evidence of some "Asian" input.

If Proto-Khazars were similar to present-day Altaians minus haplogroup C, then they would have a frequency of about 59% R1a and 22% Q.

Therefore, it seems reasonable that an overall 5/22 = ~22% of such Proto-Khazar elements into the Ashkenazi Jewish population may be likely. But, the Khazars of Khazaria may themselves have been somewhat mixed with Western Eurasian elements, which would decrease their frequency of haplogroup Q.

All this is very speculative, and one would have to take a look at Altaian and Ashkenazi Jewish haplotypes within R1a and Q to check whether this theory is valid, but if it is, I would guess that about 1/4 male-mediated influence from a Khazarian source (with wide error margins!) may be just about right.

PS: The silence of researchers about the presence of haplogroup Q in the Ashkenazi is puzzling. I hope that someone is writing a paper on it, since Q is much more of a "smoking gun" of a Khazar connection than R1a which is much more problematic due to its fairly wide distribution in West Eurasia.

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